Day 1 of DreamHack Atlanta breaks Halo Championship Series record

There was an incredible show of support from the Halo esports community as a record breaking number of teams showed up for the Halo Championship Series debut at DreamHack Atlanta. A total of 81 Halo teams checked in for the Open Bracket tournament. The 81 amateur and 12 Pro League teams have made this Season Finals the largest HCS event of all time.

It was an exciting day for Halo esports as players from all over the world checked in at the venue to compete for a chance to play against some of the best Pro League teams. Fans kept the energy high and players played their best in order to make Day 1 of DreamHack Atlanta an epic day of Halo esports.

The top amateur teams began Open Bracket play in Bo3 series on Friday, all with the goal of making it to the Championship Bracket to play against the top Pro League teams. We saw some familiar names like Oxygen Supremacy and ABCDE along with some surprising newcomers who showed us how talented the amateur Halo community is.

Winner’s Bracket: eRa Eternity vs. Wise Gaming

The night ended with a heated Bo5 series between two powerhouse teams: eRa Eternity––who reunited after Daytona with the addition of Cratos and Sabinater––and the veteran roster Wise Gaming––who brought on Nebula before the start of the Summer Season.

In Game 1 on CTF Truth, both teams needed to bring the aggression to start the series strong. It looked like eRa were guaranteed the win with a 2-0 score and less than a minute left on the clock, but Demon D ground pounded the second flag for Wise to bring it into OT. Wise were able to keep their momentum going as Demon D pushed through eRa’s defense to land the final flag cap and win the first game of the series.

After an incredible start to the series, Wise were looking to take the second win on Plaza Slayer. Wise held onto a slim lead throughout the game, but Commonly was able to turn the tables in the final minutes, opening the door for eRa to take the kills they needed to take the win in Game 2 50-47 and tie the series. Wise took the lead after a 100-32 win on Eden Strongholds, which brought the series to a Game 4 on CTF Fathom. Commonly and Cratos led the objectives for eRa as they took Game 4 3-1 in exactly five minutes.

The series was tied 2-2 as both teams headed into Game 5 on Coliseum Slayer. For the final game of the night, eRa came out aggressive and took a strong lead early on. The eRa roster was a finely tuned killing machine as they continually picked off members of Wise. At the five minute mark, Wise had a chance to turn it around after getting control of the Power Weapons, but eRa came in with one final push to steal the last four kills. Game 5 ended 50-41 in favor of eRa Eternity, putting them over Wise Gaming 3-2 and allowing them to move forward in the Winner’s Bracket.